User:Noel Jelliman/sandbox

=African Legal Philosophy=

African Legal Philosophy (ALP) is a philosophy which is deeply rooted in African custom, the existence thereof questioned given that historically very little about this philosophy was ever documented. Respecting customary values is evidenced by customary law, being the reflection of the merging of law and social order as part of African experience.

Views

Four views or trends are clearly evident when gauging an understanding of the dynamics of ALP. The Eurocentric view promotes that ALP does not exist, given its communal thinking approach and the view that no written down ALP tradition exist. The second school of thought argue that ALP might exist, but it is impossible to determine its substance and or content. It is advocated that legal rule in Africa cannot be distinguished from custom, hence there is no legal system on which to base ALP. The third view is based on the belief that there are no real difference between ALP and Western legal philosophy. This is supported by debate and understanding around the relationship between human behavior guided by morality and human behavior guided by man-made laws. The same debate raging in European and English law. The last approach of a distinctive African philosophy of law is preferred by most. African philosopher Oruka argues, that African philosophy need not follow Western philosophy. Proponents are of the belief that African philosophy reflects human life in intuitive ways.

Categories

Four well known categories of ALP exist. Ethnophilosophy is orally transferred, based on communal thought and wisdom rather than individual thought. Sage Philosophy promotes individual thought above communal thought, with fundamental legal and ethical issues of no concern. The aim of the Nationalistic- Ideological philosophy is to produce a unique political theory based on communal African belief. The professional philosophy consists of text written by Africans and regarded as philosophical by the authors.

Themes

Communitarianism, Reconciliation and Ubuntu are three themes encapsulating the broader understanding of ALP. Communitarianism focusses on the extended family, and the belief that the individual must serve the interest of the broader group. There is also a strong emphasis on reconciliation and adjudication in ALP. The aim of ALP is to reconcile parties rather than punish them. Punishment is done to restore and promote fair order. The concept of Ubuntu is an important contributor to ALP. It embraces aspects of communitarianism, reciprocity, relationships and reconciliation. Emphasis is placed on the need for harmony through social interaction within a group. Ubuntu as an ALP, largely conflicts with many Western philosophies. Imposing Western reasoning onto the different concepts of Ubuntu renders them meaningless.

Criticism

ALP as a philosophy is not immune to criticism. Africa has diverse populations and brings into question the concept of “African legal tradition”, given that common geographical areas are not synonymous with social consensus. Ubuntu as a philosophy for a multicultural society is also questioned.

Current status and legacy ALP is regarded as a central philosophy for all Africans. It is not a static philosophy and is continuously evolving. It was predominantly oral traditions which shaped the African way of thinking, while written accounts of traditions are of recent nature. In most colonized countries in Africa, customary law systems and courts were replaced with systems of colonization countries. It is accepted that neither African legal system nor the philosophy accompanying this system was developed. The result of colonization being that, in almost all of the African countries a mixed legal system of European laws as well as African customary laws is evident.

=References=